What struck me the most with Yong's podcasts was that I totally agree with most everything he said.
I'm sure eventually, my now 23 yr. old son who is a huge gamer and has been for several years, will be sure to tell me I was wrong all these years when I told him to STOP playing games on the TV and go outside and get some fresh air. He will be the first to point out what people can learn from gaming. I will feel much better about gaming when I hear people are actually learning a language vs. how to kill someone. Although, I do think Yong is right that taking "Game Theory to Curriculum" would be a very powerful learning tool.
The biggest thing that bothered me while listening to Yong is that I feel like I'm going to have to live this "no-change" nightmare all over again. Kodak didn't change or start to change until they were so far behind the rest of the world and look what happened to them. Are we going to put our kids at such a disadvantage because we won't change how and what we teach? Will our children will be so disadvantaged globally when they go out to the real world to find a job?
I strongly believe that we need to rethink how we use this new powerful tool of technology.
Should we be more focused on global learning, languages, cultures and interacting with others or math, science and getting good grades on tests?
I also agree with Yong's comment about how blocking computer use from kids in an attempt to protect them really results in the lack of trust we have in them and it very much limits their power, creativity and trust to do great things with that technology.
Week 14
13 years ago
Wow! Great thought and point about Kodak! As a language teacher I feel we need to focus on global learning, languages and cultures, but that isn't the focus now in the U.S. We are behind every other country in the world w/this thinking.
ReplyDeleteI really agreed with a lot of the points you made! It's so true about blocking certain sites! I think a lot of the benefits to the "gaming Theory" is that kids are forced to find the solutions to problems themselves. I don't know about you, but every year I have a harder time getting my students to search for and pick out the answers themselves! And all along your son was gaining these skills!
ReplyDeleteI liked your thinking about Kodak. I think that technology can teach many of the skills that we as teachers are looking for our students to possess. The challenge may be teaching students to transfer these skills to other tasks. I think that has always been our biggest challenge as educators - to get kids to make connections.
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